Contents

History

Professor Crane in his first "Scarecrow" costume.

As a young boy, Jonathan Crane had an interest in fear. Years later, he became a professor at Gotham University who then began experimenting with fear on students. Terminated by Gotham University for his immorality, Crane hatched a plan to reduce the university to shambles by causing the professors and board to constantly experience their greatest fears. Dubbing himself The Scarecrow, and adopting a costume along a similar vein, he chemically bombarded the university members who opposed him, reducing them to a paranoid state. His plans, however, came to ruin upon the intervention of Batman. Though he was able to incite the same fear within the hero, the Dark Knight overcame it and imprisoned his foe.[3]

Some time later, the Scarecrow escaped from Arkham Asylum. His funds all but dissolved, the scientist needed a quick source of cash. He created a chemical residue which turned adrenaline into fear; applying it to telegrams he personally delivered to star athletes, he gambled against those athletes (or their respective teams) and began raking in quick cash. The fear seemingly inexplicable, his plan progressed perfectly.

Unbeknownst to the Scarecrow, however, Dick Grayson shared a room with Brian Rogers at Gotham University. Though Rogers underwent the same debilitating fear attack after receiving the Scarecrow's telegram, at a crime bust, Robin underwent a similar attack. To Batman, the events seemed more than coincidental, and the Dynamic Duo investigated the scene. Discovering the ploy, the two once again apprehended the Scarecrow and imprisoned him in Arkham.[4]

While in Arkham Asylum, the Scarecrow discovered Arkham's water supply in an underground cavern. Using this, he managed to continue his criminal operations while still assuming the guise of a psychiatric patient. Unlike his previous schemes, this time, he prepared for Batman's intervention. The first plan was to contaminate the Gotham Health Spa's water, information the Scarecrow had leaked to the Gotham underbelly. A henchman (in radio communication with the Scarecrow) performed the deed, and as Batman tried to stop him, both were sprayed with a mind-manipulation gas. Batman began hallucinating, and after an accident, was checked into Arkham Asylum.

The Scarecrow terrorizes a victim in his second costume.

With Batman out of the picture, the Scarecrow began the next phase of his plan: contaminate Arkham's water supply. From there, he would be able to study the effects of fear on a massive control group. Batman, however, escaped. Despite suffering constant hallucinations, he managed to halt the Scarecrow's operations and arrest the criminal once more.[5]

The Scarecrow, like most of Batman's rogues, was present for the Trial of Batman as a member of the jury and a security guard.[6] Likewise, he was also one of the numerous villains who suffered under Lock-Up's brief security regime at Arkham; indeed, he actually broke out just to get away from him. Later, when Lock-Up was apprehended, a pleased Scarecrow vowed to teach him new lessons in fear.[7]

Much later, he developed a gas that did not cause fear; instead, it removed the essence of fear from the victim. After testing the gas on a few civilians and a disguised Bruce Wayne, the Scarecrow planned to hold Gotham ransom or the city would become chaotic with the absence of fear. Though Batman began ignoring his principles, Robin managed to subdue him and retrieve the antidote, and the two captured the Scarecrow.[1]

Shortly thereafter, the Scarecrow attempted another heist. Though he was once again caught, he managed to spray Batgirl with one of his gases, and she entered a deep sleep and began living her greatest fear: a war between Batman and Commissioner Gordon over her participation and her death in the Dark Knight's mission.[2]

Abilities and equipment

For the most part, the Scarecrow was physically unimpressive. However, his psychiatric genius and some chemistry background often proved overwhelming for his opponents. He typically employed some form of fear-inducing compound (most frequently, a gas) in his schemes.

In the battle following Batman's kangaroo trial, the Scarecrow was briefly seen wielding a scythe.

Background information

When Bruce Timm revamped the series as The New Batman Adventures, the Scarecrow received one of the most extensive redesigns, looking more like an undead being than a typical scarecrow. His new look resembled a puritan preacher with a long black wig, a skeleton mask, and hangman's noose around his neck. He was also found to be often carrying a simple, unvarnished, wooden stick which he uses as a weapon occasionally. This version of the character was voiced by actor Jeffrey Combs (instead by Henry Polic II, Scarecrow's voice actor in Batman: The Animated Series), who spoke very softly at all times as the Scarecrow.

The broken noose that appeared around the Scarecrow's neck in his revamped version was popular enough that it was incorporated into later versions of the Scarecrow in other media, including the one played by Cillian Murphy in Batman Begins and the gas-masked Scarecrow in the video games Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham Knight.

There were plans to include Scarecrow in the Legion of Doom in the third season of Justice League Unlimited, but due to the Bat-embargo, this wasn't possible.[8] This would have been a tribute to the fact that he was one of the original 13-members of the Legion of Doom in the show Challenge Of The Super Friends. It's also supposed that if he would have appeared in Justice League Unlimited, he would have been a new redesign and Jeffrey Combs was also supposed to reprise the role.